Lanai restaurant opens in former Mex location

Executive chef Ricco Griffone has a long family history in Hawaii. He and Casey Walpert have opened Lanai restaurant in Rochester.
Carlos Ortiz

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Lanai, which is a porch or a veranda in Hawaii, was chosen as the name because the building's patio is a popular gathering spot during the warmer months.(Photo: CARLOS ORTIZ, CARLOS ORTIZ/@cfortiz_dandc/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)Buy Photo

Rico Griffone has a proud heritage in Hawaii, and he's brought a taste of the islands to the East End.

Griffone and Casey Walpert have opened Lanai at 295 Alexander St., the former home to Mex, which closed in November 2016 after 17 years in business. Walpert also co-owns Tap and Mallet and Skylark Lounge, and previously was owner or co-owner of Mex, the Bug Jar and Tap and Table.

Griffone, a Culinary Institute of America-trained chef and the restaurant's executive chef, describes the restaurant's as "Asian with an island flair." Lanai, which is a porch or a veranda in Hawaii, was chosen as the name because the building's patio is a popular gathering spot during the warmer months.

The theme starts at the first-floor bar, which has eight large machines that dispense homemade, fruity, boozy slushies. The selection changes, but current flavors include Mai Tai, Zombie, Blue Hawaiian and Singapore Sling. Eight beers are on tap; Sapporo, a Japanese beer, is the house beer and the other taps rotate. A limited menu of bar snacks, called pupus, is served in the bar area; among the items are chicken wings coated in Griffon's grandmother's curry sauce.

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Lanai, which is a porch or a veranda in Hawaii, was chosen as the name because the building's patio is a popular gathering spot during the warmer months. CARLOS ORTIZ, CARLOS ORTIZ/@cfortiz_dandc/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

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Griffone's family history in Hawaii dates back to his great grandfather, who helped lay the telegraph lines from the West Coast to the islands. Family legend has it that the first message back to the mainland asked Griffone's great grandmother to marry him. Griffone lived in Hawaii until he was in first grade and still has family there.

"A lot of what I remember as a child is going in this restaurant," he said.

The upstairs dining room has vibrant colors and booth seating. The menu's approach represents the influence of various Asian cuisines in Hawaii, Griffone said. Its offerings range from Hawaiian poke to Korean japchae to a Thai green papaya salad. Items such as curry pastes, kimchi and gyoza (Japanese dumplings) are made in house.

Mauna pua, steamed buns with pork filling, are another childhood memory for Griffone; he remembers the "mauna pua man" pushing his cart and selling the buns on the beach. The sweet dough for the restaurant's version is homemade.

The menu includes many vegetarian options, with tofu offered as an alternative protein in bulgogi, adobo pork, gyozas and larb.

The owners spent a year renovating the building, removing walls to convert three rooms into one. The lower level has a large, curved bar made of carbonized bamboo plywood. The rustic brick walls of the 1865 building also were exposed.

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